


Knowing That We Feel the Same Without Saying

by mcgarrygirl78



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Drama, F/M, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-07
Updated: 2014-10-07
Packaged: 2018-02-20 08:01:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2421167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For all his profiling skills, he had no idea what that meant.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Knowing That We Feel the Same Without Saying

**Author's Note:**

> The title comes from the Cyndi Lauper song _All Through the Night_ , which is definitely on this pairing’s playlist.

Nora walked slowly to the door after she heard the knock. Her three year old tabby, John Quincy Adams, walked behind her. He knew she was tired and didn’t want to get in the way. Nora got to the door, looked out the peephole, and then opened it.

“Hi.” She said.

“Hello there.” Jason stood on the other side. He was carrying a duffle bag. “How are you?”

“I'm OK.”

“Really? I must have been misinformed.”

“Jason…” Nora sighed.

“Why would you keep something like this from me?” he asked.

“I wasn’t keeping it from you. It wasn’t like that at all.”

“C'mon Nora, you don’t need to be on your feet. We can sit down and talk.”

She nodded, turning and walking over to her couch. Jason walked into her apartment. He closed and locked the door before joining her on the couch. His bag went into the chair; Quincy stood on his back legs to investigate it thoroughly.

“Would you like to take a tabby cat home?” Nora asked. “I’m selling him cheap.”

“You would miss him too much and you know it.”

“How did you know about my injuries?”

“I'm a profiler, Nora. I knew you didn’t sound right on the phone so I did a little investigation of my own. The desk sergeant at your precinct told me most of what I needed to know. I talked to you, twice since this happened. You kept telling me that you were fine.”

“I am fine.”

“But you kept the extent of your injuries from me. Why?”

“Its complicated.” Nora replied.

She sounded exasperated and Jason didn’t know why. Maybe he shouldn’t have come. That was implausible because he rushed out of Quantico when he found out what really happened to her. He barely had time to tell Hotch what was happening. To calm his nerves, Jason took the three hour train ride from DC to New York City. All he kept thinking was that Nora was hurt and didn’t want to share with him. For all his profiling skills, he had no idea what that meant.

“OK.” He thought a simple reply might be best. Jason managed to look at Nora without making it obvious. She reminded him of a tired and wounded tigress. If he didn’t approach with sensitivity and respect he could be ripped to shreds. “What can I do?”

Nora scooted over on the couch and leaned on him. Jason exhaled, wrapping his arms around her. If that’s what she needed him to do then that was just fine by him. When he stroked his hands through her locks, Nora sighed.

“It was a drug bust in the meat-packing district. We’d been working on it a few months; there was a major ecstasy operation going on out there. Someone must have tipped them off because they were ready for us. We walked right into a shootout. Some of the guys started running and I took off after them with backup.

“To make a long story short, we cornered three of them in a stairwell. I shot one but another suspect shot me twice. I was wearing Kevlar but the impact knocked me down half a flight of stairs. That’s how I got injured.”

“Is there any lasting damage?” Jason wanted to rub her back but the robe was in the way. He wanted to touch her skin, which always felt so warm on his fingertips. He needed to connect after so long apart.

“It’s mostly bruises and some contusions. I twisted my left ankle and the doctor wants me off of it for 10 to 14 days. That’s the only reason I'm home. It’s killing me.”

“You're in pain?”

“No, I meant staying off my feet for the next ten days is killing me.” Nora replied. “Confinement has never been my strong suit.”

“That’s because you’ve never been waited on hand and foot before.”

“Jason, you don’t have ten days to devote to my care. I'm fine; I’ll be fine.”

“Ten days is a long time but I do have a week. And I'm taking it to look after you. If you insist on arguing, I’ll fight for my point. But it would probably be better for all parties if you just relax and let me take care of things.”

“I want to.” Nora barely whispered it as she held on tighter to him.

“And I want to stay, Nora. I want to make you dinner, massage your weary muscles, and hold you while you sleep. I’ll run your errands and make sure Quincy is well taken care of. Whatever you need...I’m here.”

“I need to know what we’re doing, Jason.”

With a different sigh, Nora pulled away from him. She moved all the way back to the arm of the couch. She couldn’t believe how painful that was; just to suddenly be out of his arms. It made her know, as if she didn’t already, that these feelings were real for her. That’s why she had to know everything now.

Jason studied her big, brown eyes. They were beautiful. They looked tired, concerned, and even a little scared. He wondered if his looked that way to Nora as well. There were many different turns this conversation could take. Jason didn’t want to walk most of those thorny paths.

“I got shot and the second thing I thought about was you.” she said. “We’re apart a lot; surprisingly I can deal with that. I just need to know what I am to you. I promised myself I wouldn’t push or corner you. Things were good, they are good, but I got shot and the second thing I thought about was you, Jason. I really care about you and I want to know how you feel.”

Jason moved closer to her, taking her face in his hands.

“I love you; that’s the simple answer.”

“You're rarely a simple answer kinda guy.” Nora replied.

“Sometimes it’s the only way to go.” He kissed her nose. “I'm here because I love you and want to take care of you. I don’t get to be here enough…please let me do this.”

“OK.” Her smile brought out her dimples. A golden glow surrounded her. “Did you say something about a massage earlier?”

“Yes I did.” Jason smiled. “I have some things in my bag that'll make you feel like you had a week’s vacation.”

“Mmm,” Nora closed her eyes as he pulled her into his embrace. “That sounds perfect. This feels perfect, Jason.”

He knew there was no such thing as perfect. He also knew that the better he felt, the harder he fell. Those things were always in the back of Jason’s mind but they couldn’t have him today. He was there for Nora; he was there for them. All that mattered for the next week was helping her feel better. Big or small, Jason was prepared to take care of it.

“Where do we begin?” Nora asked.

“We need to get you back in bed, Detective Bennett. Then I’ll get in with you.”

Jason stood from the couch and held out his hands for her.

“That’s the best tender loving care I can think of.” Nora replied.

She felt better already as Jason slowly led her back to her bedroom. It sucked that this was what it took to get a week alone with her man. Still, it was going to be an awesome week. She didn’t need to be a detective to know that.

***

  



End file.
